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August 26, 1957 – Paul Anka’s Crush on “Diana”

On August 26, 1957, Paul Anka’s “Diana” ranked #1 on WMGM-New York City’s Top 40 Survey. In My Way: An Autobiography, Anka revealed that Diana Ayoub was the inspiration for the song he wrote in the fall of 1956, at age 15. “When I was fifteen, I developed a crush on a nineteen-year-old girl who worked as a secretary in the offices of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Ottawa . . . . I saw her in church and at community events – and I was smitten.

“Diana was my first infatuation. I had such a serious crush on her. I made my advances as a youngster and failed dismally. She wanted nothing to do with me. Diana was my inspiration, the fantasy girlfriend – and imagined problem (“I’m so young and you’re so old, this my darling, I’ve been told”). In truth it never got anywhere near that. I think she just thought it was funny someone so much younger than her – three years! – wanted to date her. That’s where songs come from: out of stories you tell yourself in your mind.”

“Diana” reached the top of both the Billboard and R&B Best Sellers charts, and the second slot on Billboards’ Top 100. Sixteen-year-old Anka was on his way to a long, successful career.